Endless
by Niu Shiy-Ue
Summary: The Uchiha clan attracts the attention of some very unusual beings.
1. Denial

Mikoto had the perfect family.

Oh, not that they were perfect. Fugaku could have been less wrapped up in his duties as clan head and Itachi could have been more of a child, and God knows she had her own share of bad days and unfulfilled wishes. However, they were perfectly imperfect, Fugaku was caring and had fewer faults than other shinobi and Itachi was genius and of course Sasuke was just perfect, bright and sweet and his older brother adored him. The point being that her family was happy and that's all that Mikoto ever wished for.

Mikoto had the perfect family. That wasn't the case anymore.

She doesn't know when it started, when Itachi joined the ANBU or the day that Shishui died or perhaps the day Sasuke came home with burns around his mouth and on his hands and looked away when she began dabbing salve on them. Somehow, her perfect, close-knit family started falling apart at the seams and she didn't know how to stop it. It seemed every day the lines on Fugaku's face grew deeper, Itachi grew more distant and even little Sasuke seemed to be abandoning her. Nothing she said, nothing she did would bring the most important men in her life back to her. At night, alone while Fugaku and Itachi were out on ANBU missions and Sasuke was asleep she cried herself to sleep at night.

* * *

She looked down. Once, on a mission down to the very tip of Tea Country she had seen water this clear, clear enough to enough to see all the individual, sparkling white grains of sand. She had never seen water so clear, so blue before. She had brought home a string of beads from Tea, blue turquoise the same shade as the sea. She wondered what had happened to them.

This water was blue, but not the sunlit blue of her memories, darker and duller. And it was clear, but it felt like the cleanliness that came from the lack of anything living in it. No bright colorful fish or coral here, just dead, empty water over dull sand.

When she looked up she saw an island. Like the water, it was dark and lifeless, no birdcalls or breezes disturbed the silence. Even the rich foliage looked leaden and dying. A scarecrow, with some strange huge orange thing for a head passed by, shoveling grey sand and complaining.

Wait, a scarecrow?

**Mevyn Pumpkinhead**

"I'm sorry," she said turning around to stare at the young man accosting her. "I didn't see you there."

He didn't look at her. Instead his eyes (were those stars she saw in those depthless hollows?) turned towards the decaying island. **It's dying.**

"Yes"

Now those stars (eyes?) turned to her.** It's yours.**

"Mine?" she was astounded. This had to be a dream. Otherwise she would be threatening this man with a kunai or escaping under a genjutsu. Except . . . where were her kunai? Or senbon? She always carried at least a shuriken and now she didn't even have that!

**Yes. This is one of the skerries of Dreaming. This one . . . this is the one you created.**

"I . . . I did?" She turned back to look at the island. "I'm sorry. It appears to be dying."

**It is. And I can't figure out why.** Was there frustration in his . . . it wasn't a voice, at least not exactly. She more felt his words than heard them. **That's why I've brought you here. It's your dream, perhaps you can tell me what's wrong.**

Her dream? Her dream was fading before her eyes in the real world. If this was dependent on that no wonder it was starting to fall apart.

**I see.** Had she said anything? She didn't remember. One bone white arm reached out and waved. **There, Uchiha Mikoto. There is your dream. It will always be here waiting for you.**

She turned. There along the beach were her two sons. Itach was kneeling by Sasuke's side, carefully pointing out the different types of creatures in a beach pool. The sun highlighted the Uchiha fans, the ones she had carefully stitched onto their clothing.

"Oh, Sasuke-chan, be careful. There are crabs in that pool and we all remember what happened last time."

* * *

Mikoto smiled at Itachi. She had already heard the commotion from outside. She knew it was only a matter of minutes before Fugaku showed up. She was glad for the few moments Itachi was giving her before the inevitable.

"Itachi-kun, take care of your little brother, please?"

"Yes, kaasan."

She closed her eyes and fell into the dream.

* * *

She opened her eyes to a hot summer's day.

"Kaasan! Kaasan!" She scooped up Sasuke, her little baby boy. "Now Itachi-kun, what have I told you about teasing your little brother?"

"Yes, kaasan." Itachi carefully placed the crustacean back down on the sand.

"And Sasuke-chan, you're getting to be a big boy now. Big boys aren't scared of crabs, are they?"

Her little one rubbed his eyes. "No, kaasan."

She cuddled him. "It's okay. Now, I hear your father calling. He must be back with the watermelon. Let's not keep him waiting boys."

"Yay! Watermelon!" Sasuke clapped chibi hands and smiled. She shifted him into one arm then held out her hand for Itachi to take.

Mikoto has the perfect family.


	2. Moratorium

Obito turned away from the cave and toward the battle between the Konoha and Iwa ninjas. Perhaps he was a coward, but standing around staring at the place where he'd . . . it made him feel a bit queasy. He didn't want to think about what had just happened and focused on his teammates instead.

Kakashi wasn't doing well. Even if he was prodigy and had just been made jounin there was no way he could win. Tired, out-numbered and having to protect Rin as well, Obito didn't need the Sharingan to see how this was going to turn out. He wondered if he could help Kakashi, but when he raised his hand to pull away the goggles, he realized they weren't there. In fact, looking down, he wasn't all there. He could see the crushed ribs through his torn shirt. He raised his left hand to feel his face then dropped it. He didn't think he wanted to know what he looked like right now. For the same reason he kept his right hand in his pocket, rather then taking it out and looking at it.

Obito felt relief when he saw his teacher save his teammates. Even if Sensei hadn't made it in time for himself, he didn't want Rin and Kakashi joining him any time soon.

If they joined him at all. Obito wasn't sure what he had expected, but hanging around like this wasn't it. Actually, if he had been expecting anything, he had been expecting nothing at all. Being a ninja, in Obito's opinion wasn't conducive towards believing in an afterlife. Frankly, he suspected most ninja were atheists, like himself.

"Actually, the ratio of believers to non-believers is higher among ninjas, soldiers and other people in high-risk populations than it is among civilians and people who live relatively peaceful lives." He whirled around. Behind him was a woman, black hair and pale, dead skin, wearing a weird symbol on a thong around her neck. She smiled at him. "Hi there!"

"A-what-uh-you can see me?" He had just died hadn't he? So why was this woman talking to him?

"Sure can."

"But, I'm dead, right?"

"Yup. Surprised?"

"No, not really." Obito suddenly sat down. The shock was wearing off and his mind was starting to spin. "I mean, as a ninja, and the war and all, it was bound to happen sooner or later."

"That's true." She sat down next to him, pulled a handkerchief from god-knows-where and gave it to him. He stared at it for a second. "You look like you need this."

He realized he was crying and took it, wiping his eyes (eye? Did he have either anymore?) then blowing his nose. "Thank you. I just . . . "

"Take your time. I'm listening."

"It just hit me: there's nothing left. I mean, I haven't done anything. I haven't made jounin, I haven't gotten my first kiss, I haven't told Rin I love her. Is this all I get?"

"You got a life, kid. Whether it's three-hundred years or just a few days, that's all anybody gets."

"I'm not a kid, I'm a chuunin." he answered absently. He sniffed then wiped his eyes again. "So I guess you're . . . "

"Got it in one, kid."

"I . . . " he swallowed. "Do you know what happens . . . I mean, what happens after?"

"Varies. It depends partially on what you want and partially on what world you're in." She patted him lightly. "Is there something you have in mind?"

Obito hesitated. "Could I wait for them?"

She looked at him with fathomless eyes. "You know, that's no guarantee. They might not appreciate it."

"That's okay."

"Well, I don't usually make exceptions, but it can't hurt once in a while." She patted him on the back. "Just don't be asking for any more favors. And don't try and bargain for my time when they're all-"

"I won't. Thank you, ah . . . "

"Call me whatever you like."

"Can I call you neesan then?"

She laughed at that. "You remind me of one of my younger brothers. Yes, you can call me neesan." She stood then helped him up. "Now if you excuse me, I have some other business to do."

He watched her go to one of the Iwa nins. As she embraced the man, Obito turned away, to follow his teammates back to Konoha.

Behind him, he heard the flutter of vast wings.


	3. Understanding

At first, Sasuke assumes she's just another one of Orochimaru's experiments. Her shifting form, her erratic behavior, it all points to too much strain, too many drugs, all too fast. But she was stranger than simple insanity, her apparent omniscience and prophetic whispers, the sheer taste of power that sleeted off her; he couldn't forget her.

The strange thing was, however, that now one else ever spoke of her. At first he assumed it was mere tact, but experience taught him that the experiments were the second-hottest topic (following the ever popular who-is-sleeping-with-whom) in the Sound. Yet not a word about the girl with the ever-changing hair, mismatched eyes and talent for altering the world at a whim. Sasuke wondered if he was going mad. It didn't help that he was the only one who could see and remember the changes she wrought.

"If you arEn't nicE to me," she threatened a little girl, a candidate for the curse seal, with six arms like one of the people who had been sent to retrieve him. "i'lL melt yoUr face hAlf off And you'lL never reMember bEing difFerenT!"

And the next moment the girl becomes a pale boy with only half a face, another of Kabuto's disposable experiments. And everyone acts as if that's the way things have always been. Except Sasuke remembers, cannot dismiss the reality that existed yesterday. And he doesn't know why.

"yoU're speciAl, that's Why. i likE You." She screams in his ear, her breath like violets and old bread.

Sasuke's had enough. He's desperate for answers and she's the only one willing to give them to him.

He gives her memories: candy and flowers, the dismembered wings of butterflies. Colorful, pretty things he remembers the little girls of Konoha love. She takes them and pulls them apart, tossing the candy into the air, turning the flowers into worms, eating the colorful wings. Every move she makes, each change pulls at his eyes, his mind, heart and guts.

"Who are you?" he asks, eyes firmly shut against her.

"i'm mE. that's Who i am."

"What are you?"

Suddenly she seems very sad. "i'M Del. i useD to be Delight. now i'M Delirium, but Not for Long."

"What are you?" He won't let the guilt stop him.

"preTty big Sister Says we'Re arCheTypeS. sad biG brotheR calls uS anima. Sister/BrotheR doesn'T care."

"What are you?"

The changes are slowing, stopping. The hair smooths and stills, remaining a bright fiery red. The eyes are still mismatched but no longer shift and change with every breath. She speaks and once again her power comes to the forefront of his mind, saturating the world. "I am Del. Youngest of the Endless."

Del understands him. The waking nightmare of his present life, the pyrite Shangri-La of his past. The rack of being caught betwixt the schemes of older, wiser beings, baited by his own wishes. The experience of being one's foundations on shifting sands, rebuilding his house of cards again and again. Del know him because she has lived his life, eternal and a thousand times more fully. Del gives him the answers he craves.

She's still there. Answering his questions before he asks. Dancing around his former teammates when he confronts them. He belongs to her and she will follow him for the rest of his life.


	4. Extra: Kakashi

Kakashi followed the same routine every day

Kakashi followed the same routine every day.

All habits are bad habits for an elite ninja. Get too attached to anything and it will be used against you. A favorite food is an open invitation to be poisoned. A phobia can freeze you when speed is of the essence. A schedule is like asking to be ambushed.

Yet Kakashi didn't even try to change. Every day, he started off by spending hours in front of the memorial. Then strolled in late to pick up whatever assignments no one else wanted. Another challenge by Gai (they were up to what number now?) and then off to buy food and see if the latest _Icha Icha _was out. Some assignments might take longer, sometimes Gai would think of something interesting, but essentially his life was the same, day in and day out.

Today would be no different. True, this time he was teaching instead of on a mission, but the only variation is that his work would end even earlier than usual. Even the knowledge that his team included the last Uchiha and the container didn't stir him. They'd just fail his exam anyway.

But there was someone else at the memorial today.

The bushy red hair proclaimed that he wasn't from Konoha, the unusual clothes stated he might not have been from anywhere in the Ninja Nations. "Ah, excuse me?" asked Kakashi politely. The man brushed off his pants and stood up. He was tall, big-boned and muscular. He didn't look surprised to see Kakashi, which automatically made the jounin suspicious.

"Sorry, don't mind me. Didn't mean to intrude." He stuck out his hand towards Kakashi. Kakashi stared back at the hand.

"No, no problem. Er, what's your name?"

"Olethros"

"That's a very weird name." It was a clumsy gambit, but in Kakashi's defense, it was pretty early. The sun wasn't even out yet.

"No, actually I'm from pretty far away." The red-head withdrew his hand. "I just came by to pay my respects to some people."

"Oh, you have relatives or friends on the memorial?"

"Not exactly." Kakashi waited, but the man didn't elaborate.

"Staying long then?"

"I'm just a traveler. I never stay anywhere long." For a moment, the two were silent, just listening to their ghosts. "By the way, in some places, it's rude to ask for someone's name without giving your own."

"Ah, I'm sorry. My name is Hatake Kakashi."

Another period of silence. "Do you ever think that they would be mad at you?"

"Excuse me?"

"My older sister has a saying. That we only get a life. No matter how long or short it is, that's all we get. And that no one can guarantee what's beyond that."

"Ahh . . . "

"So I shouldn't concern myself with the dead. I deal with the living and that's what I should stick to. Leave the dead to Death."

"That's very-" The taller man laughed.

"Of course, I haven't seen Teleute for a very long time. And I think she's a bit upset. She hasn't even tried to contact me, even though she always knows where I am."

"Why would your sister be mad at you?"

"Well, I did just leave without saying goodbye. And I abandoned all my responsibilities. My older siblings take that very seriously. And of course, Del was devastated."

"Del?"

"My youngest sister. Very sweet, I think you'd like her." He took a closer look at Kakashi. "Or maybe not. You seem more Aponia's sort instead." The stranger hefted a strange pack. "I'll probably stay in town for a while. Look me up if you have the time. I'll try and cook you a meal."

Kakashi nodded. He would look up Olethros again, though not for a meal. The other man seemed a little too knowledgeable about Kakashi and that made the jounin even more suspicious. Still, he thought, noticing that the sun had come up during their conversation, it wouldn't hurt to give those brats today a second chance.


	5. Through Someone Else's Eyes

Fugaku stared at the mirror and wondered what had gone wrong.

He had a beautiful wife and two talented children. He was the head of a powerful clan. They were poised to gain control over Konoha. Everything was going according to plan. So why was he feeling as if everything was slipping out of control?

He lowered his gaze from the mirror to the sink.

Something was missing behind Mikoto's eyes. Her focus, her attention, perhaps. It was if she was still there, but trapped in her own world. And something else had been born in Itachi's. It had disturbed the calmness that had always marked his eldest son. It hid his thoughts and made Fugaku wonder if Itachi was really prepared to be the clan's link to ANBU. And in Sasuke's eyes there was an anxiety that should never appear in an eight year old boy's face.

Should he halt the coup d'etat?

No, he couldn't. For so many years Konoha had supressed the Uchiha. And now he had proof that the elders were conspiring to massacre them. Fugaku would not allow this. It was far better to strike first and to gain control over the village.

And yet was it worth the cost to his family?

It must be. He was doing this so that Itachi and Sasuke and their future generations would have a better future. He was doing this for his family, for his clan. Even if it was hard for them now, it would eventually pay off.

Wouldn't it? Could he ever be sure?

Fugaku looked up. It took him precious seconds to realize that he could no longer see his own reflection in the mirror.

A pale, black-haired, grey-eyed woman looked out at him before vanishing into roiling mists.


	6. Path

At first Shisui thought he had been caught in some sort of genjutsu. One minute he had been running for his life on the wet, midnight streets of some city in Ame, the next he was in some hedge maze, the sun shining bright above him. What else was he supposed to believe?

But . . . were genjutsu supposed to be so realistic? The ninja felt the breeze on his face, and raised his hand to stroke one of the white flowers blooming on the hedge. He'd heard of illusions that went beyond sight, but to even affect smell and touch? He discreetly formed _kai_ but the scenery didn't change.

Not a genjutsu then. Or maybe just a very advanced one, but . . . Shisui activated his Sharingan. No, that didn't do anything either. Besides, he was Shisui the Mirage, the number of people capable of trapping _him_ in an illusion could be counted on one hand and the chance of one of those people being here was infinitely small.

(There was Itachi, but why would Itachi try to trap him?)

Shisui's next thought was that he had been knocked out, but that was unlikely too. Anyone capable on rendering him unconscious wouldn't be stupid enough to leave him alive. Besides, this was unlike any dream the Uchiha had ever had before. For someone whose nickname was Mirage, Shisui was a rather unimaginative person. His dreams were always silent and monotone, nothing like what he was experiencing here. "So if this isn't a genjutsu , and I'm not slumped over somewhere dreaming, I must be dead." He concluded.

"Not quite." The shinobi jumped. There was a man behind him, at least half a foot taller than him, who held a book that was chained to his arm. Shisui was disconcerted by the contrast between the all enveloping cloak and hood that the man wore and his bare feet. "Who the hell are you?"

"I am Destiny, Eldest of the Endless." The Uchiha shivered. The pronouncement should have been absurd, comedic in its grandiosity, but instead he could feel the power behind it. Nevertheless, he put up a brave front. "And what does that mean?"

"I am the one who holds the book, of all that has been, is, and will be."

"Oh, really? Then do you know how everything began?" The man opened the book to a page about a quarter of the way through and showed it to him. "How it all ends?" A page a fifth from the end. "Okay, I believe you." Shisui looked around him. "Where am I?"

"You are here in my garden."

"Okay," he decided he really did not want to know how an anthropomorphic manifestation of Time or Fate or whatever Destiny was created a garden, or what sort of metaphorical weirdness lay under what he was seeing. If the eldritch abomination was kind enough to appear in a form he was more comfortable with, he wasn't going to push it. "Why am I in your garden? Am I here to make a choice that will affect my life or something? Pick one of these paths and not the other?"

"There is only one path." The Mirage shot a strange look at his companion. "Uh, no I can clearly see many openings leading away from this junction."

"It may appear that there are many paths in front of you, but if you turn around, you will realize that there has only been one your entire life."

"I'm pretty sure I've had many choices in my life. This isn't the only fork in the road I've ever experienced and it won't be the last." The hooded man stayed quiet. "Look, just tell me which path leads me out of here and back to the real world. I need to go help my cousin." He ignored the twinge in his gut that told him Itachi was more likely to rescue him than the other way around.

"Follow the route that you are compelled to take."

"Yeah, that was very helpful." Shisui turned his back on Destiny and studied the openings before him. He closed his eyes and thought. There on the edge of his hearing, he heard Itachi calling his name. Turning towards the gap to his left, he ran, chasing the voice of his friend.


	7. Marionette

_Tell me where is fancy bred_

_In the heart or in the head?_

_How's it born? How provided?_

_Where does fancy go to die?_

_I beg you all for some reply_

_Fancy's bred within the eyes_

_With gazing fed and fancy dies_

_In the cradle where it lies_

_Let us all ring fancy's knell_

_As we follow unto hell_

_Ding dong bell_

Itachi is intimately familiar with Desire. He knows It in every form taken. It's shadow, stark and black, chases his behind his family in the form of ambition. Filling the air with the scent of peaches on humid summer afternoons, as his lover steals time alone with him. The golden glint within Danzo's eyes as he gives the order for the massacre. His brother's smiles, painfully short and fragile. The voice of his savior/murderer, rendered uncertain by the rain.

Itachi will follow Desire for the rest of his days.

But Desire has always been the most fickle of Them all, and those who choose Desire will never be long for this world.

* * *

**Author's Notes:** And so we've come to the end. Sorry that this one is so short, but I've found it harder and harder to get into Itachi's head as the series goes along. As for the quote in the beginning, it's from the _Merchant of Venice_, but highly bastardized to fit modern pronunciation. Anyway, I hope you've all enjoyed this and are looking forward to my next work.


End file.
